Along Came Renomon
by DarkFox2009
Summary: After Ryan's disappearance from his karate school, the tamers set out to find their missing friend which ends with a shocking discovery involving the mysterious white furred Renamon, all while having to deal with Myotismon's continuing efforts to eradicate humanity and claim both worlds for the darkness. Can a new hero rise in time to combat the forces of evil before it's too late?
1. Searching For Ryan Riley

**This story marks the literal birth of the hero for my stories! I'm so excited! I decided to push it up from the sixth story to the fifth because it just made more sense. And, without any further rambling, I give to you...Along Came Renomon!**

Twenty four hours had gone by without any sign of Ryan after his mysterious disappearance from the dojo in Fox Hollow, leaving behind very little that could allude to where he currently was which worried all of his friends, especially Renamon who spent the entire day and night looking for him all over the town, to no avail, before returning to Shinjuku with Rika and Zack. They, along with the rest of the tamers, all met up at D.A.T.A. to figure things out.

"Wait…he disappeared from behind a locked door? How…?" Kazu asked, in disbelief about the details.

"If one of us knew that we wouldn't be looking for him, would we?" Rika's response was a tad abrasive and sarcastic, a common occurrence when dealing with Kazu and Kenta's staggering immaturity. "For all we know Myotismon's got him again."

Henry had his doubts about that particular theory. "If that was true he'd have tried luring us into a trap or something in order to rescue Ryan."

"That means we're right back to square one." Zack added, anxiously wanting to find his best friend alive and well. "It's a good thing we've got a three day weekend which helps me cover with Mrs. Riley until tomorrow night. But if he doesn't show up by then, we're going to have a real problem on our hands trying to explain the situation to her. Good thing he told Mr. Tsukino though. He's keeping an eye out for him while we're gone."

The door to the conference room slid open as Yamaki walked in. "Before any of you ask, there are still no updates on Ryan's whereabouts. Every scan of the city, Fox Hollow and the digital world we've done using the ARK satellite has turned up nothing."

"What about his partner digimon? You found white fur in the dojo, right?" Takato brought up perhaps the most important factor. "Could he have something to do with this?"

"That's a good question." Yamaki agreed with the tamers queries. "I've had Daisy going over every inch of Ryan's D-Power to determine if we could somehow get a lock on this "male" Renamon. Unfortunately, the device hasn't yielded any answers. Most of its functions are not _functioning_ properly, including the locator. And without a bio-signature to search for, I'm afraid we're at a complete stand-still. Our only hope is if one of you knows something that could help explain how and why he vanished from a locked lavatory."

At first no one uttered a single word. Conflicted by a promise and loyalty, Renamon, wearing and holding Ryan's Yin Yang medallion for safe keeping, eventually stepped forward which caught _almost everyone_ in the room off guard. "I told Ryan I wouldn't say anything…but if we want to find him, I have no choice."

* * *

Myotismon stood on the balcony, in his private chamber, overlooking the entirety of the dark zone: a barren landscape except for the mountains and peaks where his fortress was located. The news of Ryan Riley's disappearance had reached him thanks to Aurumon who had been spying on the vixen during her search for the teen in Fox Hollow. "With that human out of the way and unable to interfere in our plans, the digidestined are vulnerable. We should strike now while they are preoccupied with looking for him."

"No." Although the vampire felt equally as eager, if not more so, as Devimon he could not be sure that his long-time foe was permanently gone. "Not yet at least. There's still the matter of that _other_ Renamon who helped destroy Dracmon. If he is the boy's partner, they could be trying to draw you and I out by making us think we have the upper hand."

"Master, do you really believe the boy would be so ruthless as to use his own allies as bait?"

"Yes…" Myotismon had some initial doubt, until thinking back to when he took control of the then pre-teen's mind and what he learned during that time. "…I do. While highly unlikely, I wouldn't put it passed him for a moment. Ready the shadow slayers. Let us find out for sure if that is indeed the case."

* * *

Yamaki took off his glasses, rubbing his eyes in frustration. "Why didn't you tell us he was experiencing these side effects weeks ago when they first started happening!?"

"Because he asked me to keep it between us and I was honoring his wishes." A small part of her that wished she had said something sooner but felt that loyalty was more important when making that promise. "I had no idea it would go _this_ far."

"I don't understand. We ran all those scans on him after MasterTyrannomon destroyed Hypnos and there was nothing out of the ordinary." Janyu added while going through hard copies of the results from those tests. "I have to admit, I'm at a loss for what is happening to Ryan and why for that matter."

Suddenly a call came in on Ryan's cell phone which was in Zack's possession at the time. "It's the dojo's number…" The realization that it could be important made him answer. "…hello? Yeah…we'll be right there. Thanks…" He hung up to address everyone in the room. "…that was Ryan's sensei. His sister Hailey came to the dojo because she got scared by something last night and wanted to talk to her brother about it. Mr. Tsukino's keeping her there so she doesn't go over to my house looking for him."

"Alright, get back to Fox Hollow. Takato, Henry, go with Zack and Rika in case they run into any trouble while they're there." The group wasted little time and made a hasty exit. "In the meantime, Janyu, I need you to contact an old friend of yours. I have a feeling we're going to need his expertise soon enough."

* * *

Only a few minutes later, the tamers and Zack made it to the dojo albeit with Renamon invisible, Terriermon pretending to be a stuffed animal and Guilmon, rather than being crammed into a cardboard box, was disguised in a brown trench coat, black derby and sunglasses. "Takato, I can't see where I'm going."

"Don't worry, boy. I got you." What Takato failed to see was the lip of concrete which Guilmon caught his foot on, beginning to lose balance. "Whoa, look out!" The dinosaur stumbled into the hall, crashing into a small display and losing his disguise in the process.

"Smooth move, goggle head!" Rika exclaimed, shaking her head at their combined clumsiness.

Sensei Tsukino and Hailey came running in to inspect the commotion. "A digimon…! Cool!"

Guilmon closed his eyes, smiled and waved to her, with Takato nervously chuckling right next to him, then dizzily saying, "Hi…"

* * *

A few minutes later, after making sure that no one would interrupt them, Rika took the liberty of explaining who they were and what was going on to Ryan's sister, seeing no other alternative if they were to question her and maintain a low profile. "Now that you know who we are, can you tell us what you saw last night?"

"First I want to know where my brother is." Rika had left out that detail, unsure of how she would react upon learning of Ryan's disappearance.

Renamon approached the sitting twelve year old, kneeling down in front of her. "Your brother is one of my closest friends, Hailey, and I know he would want me to be honest with you. The truth is we don't know where Ryan is at the moment. He disappeared from this building yesterday and what you saw may help us find him. Please tell us or me if you aren't comfortable talking around everyone."

"How about we let them talk?" Henry suggested which the rest agreed to, leaving the room temporarily.

"Aw…but I want to know what she saw." Terriermon began to whine out of sheer curiosity.

Once they were alone, Hailey seemed to feel more at ease. "Okay…last night I got out of bed and went to get some food. And I saw…" The mere thought of it was enough to bring feelings of fright rushing back. Renamon sensed this and held Hailey's hand. "…I saw eyes…glowing blue eyes looking at me."

A thought came to the vixen's mind which she made a point to ask, "Were they anything like mine?" She looked directly at Renamon's eyes but could not tell for sure. "Would it be okay if I turned the lights off then on again?"

"Can your friend sit with me?" Overhearing the entire conversation, due to the acoustics, Rika walked back in and took a seat next to Hailey. "Go ahead." The instant the switch was flicked down; her eyes became quite luminous in the darkness. "That's what I saw! Please, turn the lights back on!"

Renamon did as the girl wished, illuminating the room again. "I apologize for scaring you." She was silently forgiven yet the experiment yielded a result that confirmed her suspicions. "Can you show us where you saw the eyes?"

* * *

Following a short trek back to the Riley household, Hailey led them into the backyard. "That's the kitchen window, so whatever it was I saw had to have been standing right here."

"Whoa…check it out…" Zack pointed at the dirt beneath the window itself. "…paw prints."

Guilmon sniffed the dirt and got a scent that led from ground level up the houses side. Electing not to wait around for speculation, Renamon leapt onto a tree limb that extended directly to one of the upper floor windows, and almost immediately found a second piece of white fur on the windowsill, as well as another print, before leaping back down. "He was here…Ryan's partner. That's who you saw."

"Maybe he was looking for him like we are?" Takato asked, trying to remain optimistic.

"Then why does he show up when it's _convenient_ for _him_ and disappear?" Rika found herself becoming frustrated by the situation. "What kind of a partner is this guy supposed to be? Why didn't he help Ryan during the entire battle with FlameWizardmon? Or when he was attacked in the dojo and by the docks?" She withheld the fact it was Renamon in both of the latter instances due to Hailey's presence then calmed down. "Sorry…I just don't think that other Renamon has his tamers best interest at heart. And that bothers me."

Terriermon, having heard a rustling coming from behind them, turned and gasped. "That's not the only thing that'll bother you! Look!"

A small group of shadow slayers appeared on the opposite end of the backyard, bent on causing some destruction. "Get Hailey inside, now…!"

Zack hurried his friend's sister into her house as the digimon prepared for a fight. But before they got the chance to unleash even a single attack, the white Renamon flipped over the fence and hit one slayer with a flying kick. Using the leftover momentum he back-flipped into position for a diamond storm that ended up obliterating the rest, preventing a bigger battle that would have attracted the unwanted attention of neighbors.

"Oh! That's incredible!" Henry exclaimed, amazed by digimon's display of power. "He got rid of them all in one shot!"

After landing on the ground in a kneeling position, then standing back up, he looked at the trio of humans and digital monsters with curiosity, tilting his head as if studying them. "Um...why is he looking at us like we're aliens or something?"

Though Terriermon and most of the others were puzzled, Takato had the strangest feeling he'd seen that look before. Then it hit him. "Oh…wait a minute…I think…I think he's a…baby." They all looked at the goggle clad teen like he was crazy. "Not a _baby_…I mean he's acting the same way Guilmon did when I first found him…like he has no clue about _anything_."

"He still doesn't…" Rika couldn't resist the urge to poke fun. "…but I think you're right."

Sensing another hit and run was about to happen, Renamon took a few steps forward trying to disarm the male and gain his trust, prompting him back up the further she encroached.

"I'm not going to hurt you. None of us are. We only want to talk." It was then he noticed the Yin-Yang belonging to Ryan around the fox's neck, sparking his interest and drawing him in closer. Coming to a stop within a foot of her, he reached up and gently held the pendant in his paw. The two locked eyes which caused Renamon's eyes to widen in shock. "It's him."

Henry was left scratching his head. "Uh…what are you talking about?"

"He's not Ryan's partner…" Knowing that he was no longer going to flee, she took the necklace off and carefully placed it over his head. "…he _is_ Ryan."

* * *

**Most of you probably suspected it and now it is confirmed! Ryan is a digimon! But that still begs the question...how did it happen? Stay tuned/Keep Reading to find out!**


	2. The Mon Who Wasn't A Mon At All

No one could have expected or foreseen the shocking revelation that Ryan had turned into a digital monster. The tamers and their digimon, with the exception of Renamon, were left speechless. They all knew it was possible to become a _mega_ through the process of bio-merging but never considered the thought that someone could go through such a transformation without a partner to begin with.

"Renamon…are you sure that's him?" Rika was unable to stop staring at the dual fox's.

"Yes." Her answer was prompt and full of sureness. "I could see it when I looked into his eyes."

It had not sunk in yet. There were so many questions and only Terriermon had gall enough to ask the first one. "Okay, so now that we actually found him, why isn't he talking to us?"

Ryan kept examining the yin yang medallion hanging around his neck, the string nearly invisible due to his fur, trying to understand its significance. Even going so far as to smell and taste it. The answers, somewhere in his mind, remained elusive like a persistent, unreachable itch waiting to be scratched.

"Takato, I think you might have been on the right track." Renamon referred back to his earlier theory. "Only I think it has something to do with what happens when Ryan becomes like me...it seems to affect his memory. He has no idea who he is or that he was once human."

"It certainly would help explain a lot…" Henry inserted himself into the conversation with a couple of valid points. "…like how he got all the way from Hypnos to Rika's house without remembering. And what happened to him during the battle with FlameWizardmon and all those side effects: the fast healing, strength, speed and agility."

"Shouldn't he have turned back to normal like all the other times? Why is he like this after so long?" Takato posed a most interesting question to his friend.

"Maybe the partial transformations have led up to a permanent one…I'm not really sure." Despite the sound theories, it would take more of an intellectual effort to figure out what was happening and how to reverse the process. "We should get him back to D.A.T.A. ASAP. I'm sure my dad and the monster makers can do more for him than we can."

"Hey, guys!" Zack yelled from the kitchen's screen door. "Is it safe to come out now?"

"Oh, no…what should we do about Hailey?" All of them had forgotten about his sister because of the heavy shock factor they endured from learning who the white Renamon was. "We can't tell her about this. She wouldn't believe it. Even if she does, it might be too much to take in right now."

Hailey had already begun to open the door when Storm managed to squeeze passed her, charging directly towards both vulpine digimon as fast as his legs could carry him. Renamon stepped in front of Ryan to guard him from the growling husky, fearing he'd be mauled or frightened off but the canine would not relent.

Vague memories of the animal came back to Ryan, though unable to fully recall life as a human being. "Good…boy…" He kneeled down to pet his pet then looked up at Renamon in the manner of a child. Storm, immediately after hearing Ryan's voice, immediately began behaving. "Good boy."

The entire group looked as if they had heard something a child's first words and it tugged at their heartstrings to witness such an _innocent_ moment.

"He likes you." Hailey started scratching the dog's ears, much to his delight, still unaware of her sibling's current problem. "Were you the one spying on me last night? Are you helping them look for my brother?"

Renamon moved to halt the interaction between them, worried that Ryan might regain more of a human persona and prematurely give away his identity. She rapidly tried to come up with some sort of excuse to get him back to D.A.T.A. when screeching sounds from cars breaks became audible.

Zack sprinted up to the gate entrance, peeked over stealthily and hurried back. "It's Mrs. Riley. We've got to get out of here, now!"

While he prepared the digital transportation device to send them back to Shinjuku, Rika pulled Hailey aside for a brief second to speak with her. "We've got to go back to our base right now. I promise we'll find your big brother and have him back home soon. You can't tell anyone about us, the digimon or what we're doing. Okay?"

Appreciative about being trusted with such a cool secret Hailey agreed to remain silent using an index finger and thumb to zip her lips, throwing away the key just for fun. The DTD had finished activating; the orange LED light in the center flashing impetuously and making numerous noises indicating it was ready for use. Renamon took Ryan by his paw and together they joined the others just in time to disappear in a brilliant flash of light.

"Sweetie, come help me with the groceries." Taking one last over her shoulder she hurried in.

A single leaf fell gently to the earth disturbed by two metallic talons, belonging to Aurumon, wrapped tightly around the wood of a neighboring maple tree overlooking the Riley's property.

* * *

_What an unexpected turn of events._ Myotismon was greatly intrigued by all that he had witnessed courtesy of the owl digimon. _My human nemesis is now a digimon. As troublesome as he was previously, this makes him even more so. Still, I'm strangely enjoying this new turnabout. Although I have not been able to destroy him yet, in the end defeating a mere human would hold no real merit for me… that's changed now. _Hailey runs back into the yard with Storm, throwing him a stuffed bone chew toy. _On second thought…I have a better idea. Why kill an enemy...that you can turn into an ally._

* * *

Yamaki and Janyu waited patiently in the lobby and sat across from each other on exact copies of black faux leather arm chairs, the kind one would find in many office buildings around the city. Neither man felt entirely comfortable, each anxious for different reasons. Coffee mugs, once filled with steaming beverages, were now cold as ice sitting on a small glass table in the center. It was quiet. The only noise besides their breathing was the ticking of a clock hanging on the wall above an empty receptionist's desk.

Henry's father stood to stretch, yawning from mild exhaustion, and check his watch. "It's almost eleven."

"He'll be here." Yamaki reassured his colleague, leaning forward to stand up. "The flight landed only half an hour ago. We'll give him a few more minutes before we start worrying. If anything I'm more concerned about your son and his friends than…" The main entrance doors slid open similar to ones on a spaceship complete with a hydraulic hiss for effect. "…Shibumi."

Gorou Mizuno, member of the monster makers, entered the building wearing an old ball cap and carrying a silver metallic briefcase. "Sorry I'm late…it's extremely difficult to get passed airport security these days."

"It's good to see you, Shibumi." The two friends embraced briefly. "How's life in California been?"

"Dry and hot, Tao. Not to mention I was getting quite bored with my current research, so this opportunity was very well timed."

Yamaki extended his own hand which Mr. Mizuno gladly accepted and shook. "We appreciate you coming half way across the world in the middle of the night. I…"He was stopped mid-sentence when the doors opened again. The tamers and their digimon entered, having used the cover of night to arrive without attracting attention. "We were getting worried. It looks like you found Ryan's digimon. How'd did he get through the data barrier without clearance?

"That's a little hard to explain…" Takato was unsure of how to break the news to the adults.

Ryan nervously started backing up when he spotted the blonde man, memories of his distrust for him lingering very strongly. Renamon placed a paw on his shoulder. "It's alright, Ryan…he's not going to hurt you. He's our friend."

"Friend…?" Words weren't enough to entirely ease the apprehension he felt towards Yamaki but his overwhelmingly deeper trust for her was enough to keep him calm.

"Oh! That's Ryan!?" Janyu exclaimed in pure astonishment. "How did this happen!?"

"That's what we wanted _you_ to tell _us_!" Terriermon replied, slapping his own forehead. "Sheesh!"

* * *

Lying unconscious, having somehow been sedated, on an examination table, Ryan, still in digimon form, slid slowly into a large white machine that resembled one used for CT scans in hospitals. A loud humming noise echoed through the lab as it powered up. Renamon, distressed by the sight of her friend in such a state, was allowed to remain in the room as a precautionary measure should anything unexpected occur during the procedure.

"_Incredible_." The only word Shibumi could think of to express what he was feeling. "A _real _human/digimon hybrid…this is _remarkable_."

"True as that may be, we need to figure out how this could have happened in the first place." Yamaki realized the wonder of it too but his inquisitive nature kept him focused on deducing the cause of Ryan's strange change rather than basking in its scientific significance. "This all started when Devimon almost killed him. I had a hunch there was more to his _miraculous_ recovery, and that he was hiding something, still I shouldn't have made him feel like he couldn't come to us about it. I'm heading up to the control room to see if Riley or Tally has come up with an explanation for his condition. Call me when the tests are complete."

* * *

Takato, Henry, Rika and Zack sat at the table inside the main control room while Guilmon and Terriermon went down to the lunch room for some food. "I hope they can turn him back to normal. A sophomore digimon isn't exactly going to blend in at school. And his parents would wig out, big time."

Renamon phase shifted into the room, everyone's attention turning to her. "Henry's father and Shibumi are conducting the examination. It's going to take a bit longer."

"Hey, guys! I think we hit the jackpot!" Yamaki entered just as she called the team over to her station. "Check it out. This is the recording taken during Devimon's attack downtown. We've gone over every minute of this footage…" With the video paused, Tally pressed the right arrow key to advance it in slow motion. "…and this is what we found."

The screen displayed an video still of Ryan tackling a certain fox digimon out of harm's way just seconds before, both surrounded by blue colored energy. "What is that?"

"Energy…" Rika answered Henry's question, pulling a single trading card out of the belt around her waist. "…from this modify card. I used it to give Renamon a power boost when she was hurt in the battle."

"Ryan knew it wouldn't have taken effect faster than Devimon's attack would hit me, which is the reason he intervened." Renamon added, finally understanding the mystery behind it all. "He absorbed some of my powers from that modification, didn't he?"

"We can't say that for certain, however…" Riley typed in a command that further enhanced the paused image, zooming in closer to the teenager's face showing it to be partially transformed with two razor sharp fangs and covered in a light layer of fur. "…I think this pretty much speaks for itself."

A message came in over the Comm. System. Yamaki pressed a red flashing button to put it on speakers in both corners of the room beside the large computer screens. "Janyu, have the tests been completed?"

"Yes. And I think you'll want to come see this…" There was a brief pause. "…_all_ of you."

* * *

_Wake up! _Ryan's subconscious, with a human appearance, was floating in an endless white void and startlingly awakened upon hearing the ominous sounding voices booming command. _It's about time…you have no idea how long I've been waiting for this day to come. I thought we'd never see each other again._

Ryan shook his head side to side, blinking hard to wake himself to the point he could get his bearings. "Where am I, in a bottle of white out? What the hell's going on here? Who are you?"

_Aw…I'm hurt that you don't remember me. Maybe you need a little reminder of just who I am. _What appeared to be storm clouds were gathering a considerable distance from where the teen stood. But they were no ordinary weather anomalies. They appeared to have a life of their own. Churning like ocean water during a storm. Pulsing like a heart, giving off a foreboding aura. It began spreading. Stretching across the blank landscape and headed straight for him with malicious intent. He was trapped.

_Not good…something tells me if I don't get out of here, I'm going to experience a permanent black out…_


	3. Rise of Renomon

Shibumi and Janyu were still hard at work analyzing the data gathered from numerous tests done on Ryan when the tamers and their digimon, accompanied by Yamaki, entered the lab to find out what both scientists had uncovered about the teen's transformation from human into a digital monster. "We're here. What have you found?"

"Well Tally sent us the video footage confirming what our initial scans revealed. Somehow, he absorbed a portion of Renamon's data through the power modification which caused a complete metamorphosis." Shibumi's explanation was a reiteration of what they all knew. "But here's what's _really_ interesting…" The computer screen pulled up a scan of the subjects head. "…it would appear the part of his brain controlling memory is working…_differently _now."

"What do you mean _differently_?" Yamaki asked, pushing for a more specific, in-depth answer.

"There are two types of memories: declarative, stored mostly in the temporal cortex, is a type of long term memory that forms the basis of our identities. Procedural controls our basic instincts: bodily movements, skills, etc." A command prompt highlighted the area of Ryan's brain with the most activity. "For some reason whenever he becomes a digimon, procedural memory becomes increasingly dominant while declarative goes dormant hence the feral personality."

Renamon looked through the glass window at Ryan still lying motionless inside the machine. "Is there any way you can bring him back to normal?"

"If you mean reverse the transformation, I'm not sure. It may be permanent for all we know at this point." Mr. Mizuno's reply was a big letdown in terms of good news. "However…I _might_ be able to re-awaken the part of his mind that is Ryan Riley by introducing an algorithm into his system which would effectively re-write his data. It's a short-term solution but quite risky. One minor miscalculation and he'd lose his human identity forever and still may if he remains like this much longer."

The room fell silent. There were but two choices to be made: wait to see if he could be returned to human form and possibly lose him anyway or attempt to awaken his personality in the digimon body. "I think Renamon should make the decision. She's known Ryan longer than any of us."

Rika's suggestion seemed acceptable to the entire in the room, except Renamon who disliked having a rather large weight placed on her shoulders though she felt responsible for him being in his current condition. "Ryan's never hesitated to take bigger risks in the past and I'm sure he wouldn't start to now…" The vixen faced the bearded professor. "…do it."

Shibumi nodded and spun around, cracking his fingers before beginning to prepare the machine. "It's a good thing the red card algorithm I created is still in the database. All I need to do is make a few changes to, run it through his digivice and we should be in business. It shouldn't take more than a few..." An alarm went off followed by a sudden spike in brain activity. "…oh, no…we have a problem!"

"What is it? What's happening to him?" Henry inquired, looking on worriedly with the others.

Knowing Shibumi should not be distracted from doing his job, Janyu immediately assessed the situation. "I don't know why but his consciousness seems to be in distress."

"Huh..!? What does that mean!?" Terriermon blurted out in confusion.

"It means if we don't act soon, the part of him that's human will be gone…forever."

* * *

The dark force loomed forward like a tidal wave causing Ryan to run in the opposite direction, attempting to escape but continuously losing ground. There was no place he could go to lose it, trapped in an endless void with a faceless, formless creature intent on catching him for reasons unknown. "Renamon…! Rika…! Takato…! Somebody get me out of here!"

_Run all you'd like. It will do no good. No matter where you scurry off to or hide, I will find you._

_If I ever needed a miracle, now would be the time. _As if by magic, his wish had been granted. A single wooden door appeared a mere ten feet to his left and opened by itself. _Don't know where door number two came from but I am not complaining! _He skidded to a stop, sprinted and dove through the exit which closed just as the entity was about to overtake him.

"Too close…so now where am I?" Ryan was back in the dojos office but quickly became aware it was nothing more than a projection of a familiar place created by his mind. "Oh, great, this again…well, at least I'm not possessed and I got away from _it_." A thunderous pounding, louder than any noise he'd ever heard, came from behind the closed door. "Oh, son of a…"

* * *

"How much longer Shibumi…?" With time running out to save the teenager, Yamaki urged the monster maker to expedite his calculations.

"I know…" He quickly checked his watch. "…two minutes." In the meantime, one of you needs to get his…" Renamon, fastest thanks to her phase shifting ability, disappeared and reappeared seconds later with one red and black d-power. "…digivice…thank you."

* * *

Ryan ran outside and was instantly transported to his own house. "I'm glad to be home, in a sense, but this is the first place that thing will look for me."Sounds of an explosion like event emanated from blocks away which was the creature forcing its way into his sub-conscious. "On the other hand, I don't think there's much of a choice in the matter."Within moments he was inside his room, barricading the entrance with anything available.

The light coming in from the bedroom window slowly faded until it was literally darker than nighttime outside. _Something tells me that isn't daylight savings time…_

_Knock, knock, knock…! Is anyone home? Ha! Ha! Ha! _The doorknob jiggled a little then was violently ripped out. _I admire your ingenuity but do you really believe your little barricade can keep me out? Honestly? Give up already and let me in! _

Ryan held everything in place against the force being applied by the being. _Can't keep this up much longer…someone, please, wake me up! For God sakes, wake me up! Now!_

* * *

"Done…!" The algorithm was complete. Shibumi ejected a white card, similar to his blue and red ones, and scanned it through Ryan's digivice in one swift motion. "Digi-Modify…!"

* * *

Just as the dark mass gained access, Ryan's whole body started glowing in a bright light. Brighter and stronger than any form of luminescence known to man and powerful enough to help drive the monstrosity back to where it had come from. _No! I was so close! No matter…I'd say I'll be back…but I'm always here! Remember my words whenever you look in the mirror or fall asleep! You can never truly escape me! NEVER!_

Everything went white like the void he was in earlier. Both of his eyes closed and shot back open. He found himself to be in a similar yet different environment. Inside a cylindrical tunnel with multiple light bulbs alight all around him. He could not move, strapped down by metallic clamps around both wrists and ankles. A voice over an intercom, at first inaudible, became more clear with every word spoken.

"Ryan, can you hear me?" It was Janyu Wong, sounding extremely worried and concerned. "Can you hear me? Are you alright?"

Takato, Henry and Rika each held their breath. Guilmon and Terriermon stared straight forward with identical dumbfounded looks. Renamon, in a prayer/meditative like state, anxiously awaited an answer. Shibumi felt confident his efforts had been fruitful but was ready to accept failure. Yamaki let out an exasperated sigh, believing their attempt to have been in vain.

"I'll be even better when someone gets me out of this tanning bed." An air of relief fell over everybody in an instant. One quip signified the return of their friend. They crowded into the adjacent room where Janyu released Ryan from the table, allowing him to sit up. "Thanks. By the look on all your faces I'm assuming something bad happened to yours truly. Someone want to fill me in?" Awkward silence and grins followed in response. "Why do I get the feeling there's something you're all hesitant to tell me?"

"Don't look in a mirror..." Terriermon said under his breath but Ryan, thanks to enhanced senses such as hearing, still managed to make it out.

"Terriermon…!" Everyone scolded the rabbit all at once and in perfect unison.

Not awaiting an answer, Ryan hopped up and rushed to the nearest reflective surface, the plate glass window, finally seeing what he had become. In shock he touched his new face with a paw then looked at both the paws in disbelief. He reached behind and grabbed ahold of his tail which turned out to be the breaking point. What followed was the loudest horrified scream on record, echoing through the building, throughout the city, into Earth's atmosphere and to the furthest reaches of space.

"I think he's taking it pretty well." Takato joked, removing an index finger from each ear.

Renamon approached Ryan to calm him down. "Don't worry. It's going to be okay."

"This is _not _going to be _okay_! Nothing personal but I'm your double mint twin for Pete's sake! My voice is deeper; I have fur, paws, a snout…_and a tail_!" Reality steadily sank in bringing his hysteria levels down. "I wasn't prepared for _this_. On one hand, I'll admit it's kind of cool being a digimon, especially the same as _you_." Renamon felt inwardly flattered. "But on the other…I'm not human anymore…I'm not _me_. What does it mean for my _life_? I wouldn't be able to go to school or work anymore…and how would my family react? My parents…my sister…Storm."

"About that last part…" Zack started, hinting at something else he did not want to tell. "...we kind of had to tell Hailey about _everything_ _besides _you being like this."

"You did what!?" He nearly flipped out upon hearing his sister knew about the digimon. "Why, may I ask?"

"We didn't have much of a choice. She saw you last night like _this_ and Guilmon at the dojo."

Turning his attention to the crimson colored dinosaur with a raised a claw, nervously smiling, and said, "Sorry…I tripped."

"Great…this day keeps getting better and better. She's going to blackmail me to death…_if _I can ever go home again." Ryan's depression gradually worsened with every passing second he remained a digimon. "I need to be alone. I'm going for some fresh air." Yamaki was about to speak but never managed to get a word out. "Don't! I am not in the mood for your crap right now! You can run all the tests you want _after_ I can get my head together, so back off! I'm out of here!"

He stormed out and slammed the door behind him in frustration. "I was going to suggest he try meditation. It works for me. How else could I stay so calm?"

* * *

A full moon coated the city of Shinjuku in a mellow glow. Down on the streets people went about their nightly routines, unaware of what was high above running across rooftops with inhuman speed, flipping over massive gaps in between buildings as if they were nothing and screaming with enjoyment. "Yahoo…! Yeah…! Alright..!"

Several minutes later, Ryan, having managed to learn phase shifting, appeared atop the highest pillar of a monument in Shinjuku Park gazing into the moonlight sky. _This is incredible! I've never felt anything like this! The power…it's intoxicating. Maybe this won't be so bad if its forever. _A faint rusting sound nearby caused his ears to twitch, hair to stand up and body to tingle. He then turned and scoffed. "Come out…I know it's you."

Out of the woods emerged Renamon, looking up and locking eyes with him. "You could sense my presence, couldn't you?"

"Yeah but regardless I knew _you'd_ follow anyway. But how did you find me so quick? You didn't know I was going to end up here unless you followed me all the way from D.A.T.A." She held up his digivice still in tracking mode. "I can already tell that's going to be a pain in the ass down the road. On a side note, tell me what you think and be honest…" Ryan turned to his left, then his right. "…what do you think of the _new _Ryan Riley? And don't take into account I look the same as you."

"Honestly, at this moment I'm reminded of something Rika said to me one time after a battle."

"What's that?" Crossing his arms in anticipation, eager to hear what she was going to say.

"How heroic you look right now standing in the moon light…" Ryan almost let the comment go straight to his head at first but kept from doing so and smiled. "…but using your human name while you're a digimon doesn't work. And it could be _problematic _at times."

"You have a point. Plus, every _super-hero_ needs a handle." A fast brainstorm yielded a result he felt would be suitable. "I got it! You're a girl and your name's Renamon, right? Well, since I'm a guy, just switch out the letter "a" for an "o" and you've got…" He flipped down to the ground, landing directly in front of her. "…Renomon."

Renamon smirked, handing him the d-power. "It's not bad…_hardly original_…but not bad. Now that you seem to be feeling better, we should head back. Follow me and I'll show you the _scenic_ route…" She began walking in the opposite direction, rotating her head enough to see him from the corner of her eye. "…that is _if_ you can keep up, big boy."

Renomon was caught off guard by a flirtatious manner he'd never seen from the fox before but grinned at the challenge. "Lead on, foxy lady."

With that they disappeared, off into the night. Devimon, who had been stalking them from afar the entire time, came out of hiding. His eyes shining in the shadows like pools of blood. "How poetic…birds of a feather…that shall die together."

* * *

**Just to clarify, Renamon called Fugamon "Big Boy" in episode 2 of the Tamers season in case anyone was wondering. I thought it was a good time to bring back that flirtatious part of her personality.**


	4. Do Digimon Need Therapy?

**I am so sorry for the delay everyone (especially to all those biting their nails waiting for the next update) I've had quite the eventful couple a weeks. 25th Birthday, WrestleMania 29, etc. Not to mention I needed a break from writing for a bit. But, fear not, the story and series will continue. Even if I take breaks I will always come back to it. I will not start something and stop mid way through. Promise!**

* * *

Sunrise peaked over the horizon, bathing all of Shinjuku in its warmth. There wasn't a cloud to be seen in the sky. Birds were chirping and so were crickets. The air was cool, which created a lingering amount of dew that coated anything it touched. And, despite being fall, temperatures were predicted to be mild. It was what most would refer to as _the _perfect day.

For Renomon, however, the glorious morning could not hold a candle to an adventurous night of sightseeing around the city with Renamon. They had intended to return to D.A.T.A. right away but found themselves to be enjoying each other's company too much to do so, albeit non intentionally.

"Thanks Renamon, that was so awesome! You really get a whole different view of the city as a digimon!" Renomon expressed his gratitude to her for a late night tour of Shinjuku from a new and unique perspective. "I wonder if anyone's going to notice those missing letters from that billboard for "Toshiro's Massage Parlor" I crashed into." She batted an eyebrow at him. "What? It was an accident! I'm not used to going that fast in this body yet and I didn't see it in time!"

No sooner had the elevator doors opened the two were greeted by Yamaki who looked less than pleased by how long they were gone for. "Feeling better?"

"Uh…yeah…lots." The fact that he appeared to be taking it all lightly caught him off guard. "So you're not…mad at us for being gone this long? Cause I honestly thought you were going to be royally pissed."

Yamaki removes his sunglasses and places them in his coat pocket. "Actually…I believe I owe you an apology. For the last several weeks I've kept you under a microscope about everything I could thinking that you couldn't be trusted which is probably why you weren't honest about the side effects. Truth is you've unselfishly risked your life a number of times for us and the world as well." He extended a hand which the fox digimon looked at hesitantly before shaking. "I'm sorry, Ryan."

"Apology accepted." They were starting over with a clean slate. "Oh, and its Renomon now… at least while I'm a digimon."

"Then let's see if we can bring Ryan Riley back." Yamaki added while putting his sunglasses on.

* * *

Over the next several hours Renomon underwent countless examinations. The first were a series of physical tests to help measure his enhanced abilities. To measure his strength, assortments of objects were placed in a large room used mostly for trials on new devices. Items provided varied from a simple set of weights to an old, rust covered van. And by the end of it he had lifted every single piece of equipment with relative ease.

D.A.T.A.'s gym track, along with a radar gun helmed by Janyu, was being utilized to clock the digimon-human hybrids speed while Shibumi timed him with a stop-watch. "Alright, so you just want me to run a mile?"

"That's all." Mr. Wong replied, finishing the calibrations on the gun. "Go when you're ready."

Renomon started slow but quickly picked up the pace; blazing around the track so fast that his speed could no longer be measured. When he came to a stop about a minute later, feeling no after effects from going so fast, the first words out of his mouth were, "Does that qualify as faster than a speeding bullet or what? What's next?"

"We're moving onto the psychological testing due to the fact that we have plenty of footage from your nocturnal excursion for our agility assessment." Yamaki was walking out the door but came to a sudden halt. "Oh…and the money to repair the billboard you wrecked is coming out of your next paycheck."

An emotional high for Renomon instantly turned into a financial disappointment. "Oh, come on! The city's insurance pays for all the damage done during digimon attacks! Can't you just make that another write off or something?"

* * *

Although school in Fox Hollow was closed for a three day weekend, the others were not as fortunate. Takato was drinking a carton of milk during lunch time when Kazu and Kenta slammed trays down on opposite sides of their friend, frightening and causing him to inhale the liquid into both nostrils which then proceeded to leak out his nose. "Dude…! How could you not tell us that the new guy turned into a digimon…?"

"I thought we were supposed to be friends." Kenta added, equally hyped up. "And friends don't keep secrets from each other, especially one that cool."

Blowing the remaining chocolate syrup out of his nose, Takato answered, "Sorry. I guess I forgot to…hey, wait a minute, how did you two hear about that anyway?"

"We cannot divulge our sources." The duo replied, crossing their arms and facing forward.

_10 Hours Earlier...Via Private Chat Room…_

_BlackWarKazumon: So, did you guys end up finding the newbie or what?_

_Boringdramon2000: Yeah, what happened?_

_T-Bunny: We found him alright but…he's a digimon now! That white Renamon we all thought was his partner…is him! _

_BlackWarKazumon: No…way…_

_Boringdramon2000: Seriously!?_

_T-Bunny: Yep! And we all know what that means, right?_

_BlackWarKazumon; Boringdramon2000; T-Bunny: RENAMON'S GOT A BOYFRIEND!_

"Terriermon, what are you doing!?" Henry yells, walking back into his bedroom after a shower.

_T-Bunny: Got to go! Bye!_

"Uh…okay…" Takato replied awkwardly due to the pairs never ending weird behavior. "What's the big deal, though? Henry, Rika, Ryo and I can become digimon too, you know."

"Yeah, Chumley, but all of you _merge_ with a separate digimon to turn into one. He doesn't need to because he's his own tamer and partner at the same time!" The excitement displayed by Kazu was not enough to downplay how serious he felt about the discussion, sounding almost astute in his explanation. "And, after school, we are so going straight to D.A.T.A. to meet the world's first ever _digihuman_!"

The intercom on the wall screeched to life. "Kazu Shioda and Kenta Kitagawa, _please_ report to the principal's office…_now_."

Kazu and Kenta each become ill with fright and gulp, then say together, "Detention…"

* * *

Renomon sat in a chair hooked up to a small machine via electrodes on suction devices that were attached to his chest, arms, and head. "Remind me again why you feel it necessary to _hypnotize_ me? This isn't a Vegas stage show, you know."

"We just want to make sure that this transformation hasn't affected you on a grander scale." Shibumi responded as he finished setting up for the hypnosis session about to happen. "Not to mention we need to figure out what caused the feral personality to take over each time you became a digimon and if it will happen again or not. Having undergone hypnotherapy myself I can assure you the procedure will be painless, even refreshing in some cases."

"Somehow I doubt that." A snide remark based on how often things went as planned concerning anything involving digital monsters.

The hypnotherapist they had brought, a middle-aged gentleman with dark black hair with touches of grey on the side, wearing a brown suit, in took a seat across from him. "Hello. My name is Doctor Daichi Miyamoto. Before we begin, I must ask if you've ever been hypnotized at all in your lifetime."

"No…never…" Renomon could feel himself becoming more and more anxious which caused his paws to tingle and chest become tight making it difficult to take in the smallest breath. "…would it be alright if Renamon…um…held my hand…err…_paw_…while I was hypnotized?"

"Of course...you must be entirely calm for this to work." Daichi replied, readying his pad to take notes during the session while simultaneously making sure the machines reading vitals and brainwaves were functioning properly. "And at this moment your anxiety levels are off the scale."

Renamon approached from behind, gently seizing her friends paw from a vice grip it had on the arm rest. "Don't worry. I'm right here."

"Thanks." All of the anxiety he'd been feeling subsided the moment that she entered the room.

The therapist adjusted his glasses and began the session. "Now, I want you to concentrate on my voice. Your eyes are getting heavy. Every bit of tension in your body is starting to ease, making you feel completely relaxed." Renomon blinked multiple times until his eyes shut. He then went from sitting up straight to almost lifeless in the chair, slumping down. "Imagine yourself in a place that is familiar. Somewhere you feel safe and at peace."

* * *

Lying on his back, Ryan opens both eyes and finds himself staring into a mesmerizing night sky. "I…I'm back in the digital world…" After sitting up and taking in the surroundings, he instantly realized the location. "…on an overlook opposite the beach. I haven't been here since I was a kid. This is where Renamon, Strabimon and I came after I got possessed by Anonymon." Upon running a hand through his hair, he made another startling realization. "Hey! I'm normal again!"

_That's good, Ryan…excellent._ The fact that his psyche was represented in human form was a major breakthrough to discovering how to help him transform back in reality. _Next, I need you to try and retrieve some lost memories…the ones where your feral personality was in control while you were Renomon. _

Struggling to remember, Ryan walked over to the cliff's edge and sat on the grass. In frustration he tossed a rock into the water below which made a loud splash then created a giant whirlpool in its wake.

Without warning a thin beam of golden energy, similar to string or a spiders web, shot out from its depths and went directly into the teen's mind, bringing forth a flood of images: Renomon running across the rooftops of Shinjuku at night, jumping the gap between buildings, fighting and destroying FlameWizardmon, collapsing in the forest then de-digivolving, phase shifting out of Hypnos on the way to Rika's house during the battle with MasterTyrannomon, transforming in mid-air after being thrown through the window, tag teaming with Renamon against Dracmon, spying on Hailey and lastly encountering the tamers leading up to his reawakening.

"I remember _everything_. Not only that but I think I figured out how to turn back into myself too."

* * *

Yamaki nodded at the doctor, a signal to end the hypnosis. "Alright…I'm going to wake you up now. And when I do, you'll…"

"Wait!" There was an air of fear in his voice. "I think…there's something _else_ here with me."

All present exchanged worried glances then returned their attentions to the doctor. "What is it?"

* * *

Directly behind him were a set of double doors that appeared as if they had been burned by fire due to how black the wood and charred it was.

Although he was afraid, Ryan mustered up the courage to investigate. He reached for the two handles, his hands shaking the entire time, and in one swift motion swung them open. The digital world disappeared as he now found himself in a gothic themed hallway. It was dank. Dripping sounds emanating from everywhere while cold draft blew through. The walls were lined with torches barely keeping it light, unaffected by the ghostly wind. _Where are you now?_

"I don't know…some sort of passage. Like the inside of Myotismon's fortress but _different_."

_Listen very carefully…where you are could be dangerous. I want you to leave it and wake up._

Frightened by his surroundings, he had no argument to getting out of there and returning to the waking world. However, there was no point of exit. The passageway stretched on and on with no end in sight. "Problem…the way I came in is gone. I'm trapped." The ground and walls began to vibrate lightly then quake violently. "_It's _coming!"

Doctor Miyamoto's voice was replaced by Renamon's. _Ryan, listen for the sound of my voice and run towards it. That's the way out. Go!_

Trusting her with all his heart, Ryan spun around and ran full speed in the opposite direction.

_Back so soon? _Hearing the all too familiar voice and glancing back yielded a terrifying sight…an amorphous creature closing in fast. _Today must be my lucky day! Now, be a good boy, stop this pointless running and accept your destiny!_

_Come on! Come on! Almost there..._The literal light at the end of the tunnel was so close yet so far. It almost seemed to be moving further away from him while his pursuer continued gaining ground. Ryan's footsteps and heartbeat were in perfect synch, desperation evident in every breath. Time and space distorted, moving in slow motion like out of a movie. Mere inches separated him from escape and the unknown. Just as he was about to be overtaken…

* * *

Renomon jumped to his feet, turning in every direction like a hunted animal, knocking over the chair and table in the process. He backed up against the wall. No one dared approach him until the panic subsided. Feeling as if every ounce of energy had been drained away, he collapsed into a seated position. His digital body turned into data before transforming him back into a human being, fully clothed save the shirt he never had the opportunity to put back on.

Renamon helped him stand, putting his left arm over her shoulders. "Are you alright?"

"If I said the cliché line "never better"…I'd be lying. Honestly…I feel like a _big _pile of..."

* * *

**Shit...I'm out of ideas for a better ending to this chapter. Oh well.**


	5. Track And Battlefield

A nine ounce sirloin, bread crumbed string beans and mash potatoes with gravy from the DATA cafeteria sat in front of Ryan who was about to dig in following an exhausting ordeal inside his own mind. Renamon sat across from him, watching with disgust, due to his table manners, and admiration because of how un-phased he always was immediately after a battle or harrowing experience. "Want some?"

"No, thank you." There was something on the vixen's mind that she felt compelled to ask. "What made you think of that beach?"

Ryan nervously gulped down a lumpy mixture of all three portions, nearly choking to death. Then there was a moment of hesitation on whether or not he should be honest about why that particular location had sentimental value enough to think of it during the session. "Well, aside from the fact that Seadramon almost made me its dinner, that was where you and I …_connected_. It's where we both became _friends_…and _partners_. That _one _night changed my whole life forever. Because that's when I found someone in this universe I could rely on and who could _always_ rely on me."

"No!" Kazu yelled from the entrance to the room, ruining the moment as usual. "You're human again? I wanted to see what you looked like as a digimon!"

"Awww...same here." Kenta whined, equally disappointed by Ryan's return to the human race.

"Ugh…I knew stealing Mr. Moto's toupee and gluing it onto the chalkboard was a bad idea. Next time I'm sticking with an old fashioned whoopee cushion."

"I'll only be a moment." Renamon got up, seized the duo by their collars, lifted them off the ground and proceeded to take them somewhere they would not disturb Ryan while he ate.

_That beach…everything I said about it was the truth… _She re-entered, slowly making her way back to the table. …_except I didn't mention that was the place I fell in love with her. Hopefully one day I'll be able to tell her how I really feel. Provided I live that long given the occupational hazard of being a digidestined. Ha!_

* * *

Meanwhile, Yamaki was with Janyu, Shibumi and Daichi in the main conferencing room going over the scans from Renomon's data rewriting procedure, physical testing and hypnosis session. "Let me get right to the point. Was there anything _unusual_ found in any of the results?"

"No." Mr. Mizuno presented documented evidence by all the tests done on the digimon-human hybrid earlier that day. "Aside from the fact that he's the first of his kind, two species combined into one single being, nothing we found indicates anything _abnormal _about him. Of course we'll have to conduct weekly examinations to be sure that this transformation is not going to adversely affect the boy at some future point in time."

Yamaki turned to the doctor, who was his last hope. "Dr. Miyamoto, I realize that your particular field cannot be explained by the bounds of science but I'm interested to hear your opinions about what happened during Mr. Riley's hypnotic state…specifically towards the end."

"To be honest, I'm not quite sure." The response diminished almost all hope of solving this new conundrum. "I believe that Ryan Riley's initial metamorphosis into a digital monster caused his mind to tap into an unused, primordial area of the brain, hence the feral personality. The fact that we were able to recover those memories was a victory in and of itself. However, the place where he went and the _creature_ he encountered puzzle me somewhat. I can rule out dissociative identity disorder as it would have manifested earlier in his lifetime. One possibility is that it _could_ be a part of his own personality that he's afraid to face, manifesting as something malevolent to him. Whether it's a positive or negative force remains to be seen. Other than that, I find the patient to be mentally sound."

There was a knock on the door. Ryan opened it slightly, peeked inside then entered the room. "Sorry if I'm interrupting but I need to talk with you for a second." Yamaki stood up and went into the hall as requested. "Just wanted to let you know it's a quarter to eight in the morning at Fox Hollow. I've got school, which I would be more than happy and willing to miss if you need me here."

"Nice try." Ryan's ruse to get out of class failed miserably. "School is still your main priority. Anything we may need from you here can wait and I'll call you if there's an emergency."

"You know for _once_ I was hoping we'd agree on _something_. You're such a killjoy."

"I pride myself on it." Tipping his sunglasses down, smirking and then re-enetering the room.

* * *

Devimon made his way to the top tower of Myotismon's fortress where, in a rare turn of events, his master was, reveling at the glory of the dark zone…a place where he felt truly at home for how vile, barren and hopeless the land was just like its only inhabitant. "You summoned me, master?"

"Yes…" One word and a snake like hiss in his voice carried with it an array of calculated evil emotions. "…we must assess how powerful Renomon is and if he has any weaknesses, other than those he cares about, before proceeding further. I want you to_ personally_ see that all goes according to plan." Myotismon turned, his soulless eyes locking onto Devimon's own crimson one in a threatening nature, grinning devilishly. "And remember…the price for failure."

* * *

With only ten minutes left to get to home room, Ryan teleported home. Mrs. Riley had already left for work and taken Hailey to school per their morning routine. Storm scampered into the room, jumped up and started licking his owners face all while whining with excitement. "Take it easy boy…I'm glad to see you too."

_Glad isn't the word, kid. Your mother wouldn't let me sleep on your bed while you were gone._

"Holy…!" Ryan yelled at the top of his lungs, jumping onto the couch looking around the room as if he had heard a ghost's disembodied voice. "Who said that!?"

_Down here, Einstein…hold it…you understood that? I thought humans couldn't understand us._

Wide eyed and still in disbelief, Ryan slowly took a seat while Storm sat obediently in front of him. "Yeah, well, I'm not exactly…_human _anymore."

_That overgrown white fur ball…I knew that was you! I could smell it! Good thing I didn't bite you._

"Oh, get a grip…you're sitting in your living room having a conversation with the family dog."

_I don't get what the big deal is. You've talked to me in the past._

"That was before I could understand what you were saying! Sheesh…" Looking up at the clock, which now read three minutes to eight, Ryan raced up the stairs, grabbed the black backpack hanging on his bedroom door and came back down all in a mere five seconds. "We'll finish this discussion when I get back from school. Okay?"

_Can I sleep in your bed? Please, please, please, please, please, please, please!_

The teen rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Knock yourself out. And remind me to never watch Stuart Little on-demand ever again."

_Oh, yeah! _The husky then made a bee line for his master's bed, howling with glee.

* * *

There were only two minutes left to make it into the building without being considered late for the day. "Come on…where are you, bro? If you're late again that's four in a row and two hours detention."

"Looking for me?" Startled more by the tap on his shoulder, Zack ran forward gripping his chest tightly. "Whoa, take it easy!"

"Take it easy!? You snuck up like a freaking ninja and almost gave me a heart attack!"

Ryan couldn't help but laugh, finding humor in the situation. "Now I know what it feels like on the opposite side of the fence. Renamon's done that to me so often I'm surprised my own heart hasn't skipped a beat yet. Wait till I tell you what just happened at my place. You're not going to believe…"

He was interrupted by bells ringing loudly throughout the entire school. "Great… we're late. And _you're_ in trouble."

"Not necessarily." He looked to make sure no one was around and smiled. "I'll see you inside."

* * *

Inside, their homeroom Mr. Cooper, taking roll call, was already up to last name's ending with "R" checking off Ryan's name without even calling it, noting the empty seat. "Sir, you didn't call my name." All of the other students had been so pre-occupied they failed to notice that he'd appeared from out of nowhere, shocked looks frozen on their faces. Even the teacher had to rub his eyes to be sure he was really there. "What?"

"You weren't here just a second ago." A male student next to him replied, scratching his head.

"Yeah, I was. I walked in like three minutes ago." Reaching down, he pulled a binder out of his bag and placed it onto the black desk top. "It's not my fault everybody's so dazed out in the morning. Ever heard of Dunkin' Donuts…or Starbucks? I hear the one down the block makes a mean mocha latte, for all you chocolate lovers. You know who you are."

Zack burst through the door, out of breath and sweating. "You're late, Mr. Thomas. Take a seat."

* * *

Rika was on the way back to her bedroom after dinner when she spotted Renamon, sitting on the newly installed bench swing Mrs. Nonaka had purchased, and quietly walked over. "Looks like you've got a lot on your mind. Mind some company?"

"Of course not…" The vixen replied as Rika sat down next to her. "…I was just thinking about everything that's happened over the last several weeks: my reunion with Ryan, when he nearly died trying to protect me from Devimon, how _I _almost killed him under Dracmon's control and now his transformation into a digimon. It just seems that all the bad things that happen to him are my fault, directly or indirectly."

"Don't be silly. Ryan idolizes you. I may not have known him that long but I'm sure he'd never think you were the cause for any of that. If there's anything to be blamed for its how brave and heroic he is, among other things." Rika's words helped provide comfort and relief for her troubled partner. "I can see why you like him so much."

Renamon's eyes widened a bit. Rika had a grin on her face a mile wide by the fact that she could make the digimon feel uncomfortable by the mere mention of affection towards the opposite sex. "Well…I do…what I mean is, he's a good friend."

"Mm-hmm…" The sarcasm was heavy and easily noticeable. "… have a good night, Renamon."

* * *

A starter pistol was discharged into the air. Ryan and Zack, with the rest of their gym class, were starting a mile run around the school's track, the latter having difficulty keeping up. "I don't get it. With your powers you could blow all the fastest guys out of the water. Why are you hanging back here with me?"

"It's called keeping a low profile, remember? I start running faster than a Porsche I'm bound to attract some unwanted attention."

"You've got…to be kidding me…" Zack replied in between breaths. "…you phase shifted…into a full classroom…and you're worried…about low profiles…?"

Ryan shrugged his shoulders. "They bought it didn't they? Not to mention I avoided detention which would seriously interfere with my job: protecting the world from evil digital monsters…" A number of screams came from the opposite side of the field where shadow slayers were coming out from under the bleachers. "…like that! Help get everyone off the field! I'll handle these guys."

"You're not going to…?" The only answer was a smile and nod. "Good luck."

Wasting no time, Ryan ran behind the nearby maintenance shed and made sure that no one could or would see him change. His d-power was beeping continually. Not knowing how to operate it he pressed every button available in a hurry, trying desperately to become a digimon before the slayers could do any damage or hurt someone.

"Come on! Please, work!" Without warning, it became pure energy and attached itself to his left wrist, reforming into a new style of digivice. It resembled the old model, shaped like an arc, but was slightly longer, more condensed on the sides, had a rounder shaped bottom piece, three buttons under the screen and one in the center of the directional arrows. The biggest difference turned out to be the card reader now found at the top of the device. The central button light up. "God, I hope this works…" Raising the device up to his side, he pressed the button and said, "…I'm going digital!" The transformation only lasted several seconds. His entire body changed into data once more and re-shaped itself into that of a vulpine digimon. "Renomon…!"

Zack, busy ushering people back into the building, turned to see the shadow slayers heading towards the crowd until Renomon hit a flying kick sending one of them through a solid steel fence. "Yes!"

However, several students saw this as well and flocked back to the entrance of the field. They were quickly joined by those who were initially scrambling to escape with their lives and even several teachers that came to help. In a matter of moments, a rather large crowd had gathered to watch the battle.

Renomon, after dispatching two more with hand-to-hand combat, destroying a portion of the scoreboard and bending one field goal post in the process, leapt off the ground and gathered energy around his chest area. "Diamond Storm…!"

A shower of energy laden diamonds proved to be enough to finish the remaining enemies off. Renomon landed back on the ground to a chorus of clapping hands and cheers which surprised him. _Looks like I had an audience the whole time… _A number of the teenagers were snapping pictures with their cell phones. _…and there goes my low profile right onto the internet. Terrific… Yamaki is going to be pissed._

* * *

**This has to be one of the coolest chapters thus far in my eyes. Ryan can understand his dog (figured since he's part data now it would make sense, plus I was watching VR Troopers on Netflix and thought that it would be cool), I've introduced the D-Power Mark II, Ryan's catchphrase for when he turns into Renomon (also the name of a Digimon song) and the revelation of his existence. Don't worry his "seceret identity" is intact...for now. **

**Also, on a side note, I've got some neat ideas to make these stories more "interactive" including assigning certain music to stories that fit a single songs theme, a choose your own path story and I want to do a contest eventually where the winner gets to add their own character to one of my stories or perhaps work with me on a story itself. I'm always up for a little collaboration. Need some time to hammer out the details of everything but there are most certainly good times ahead. Yeah!**


	6. Kidnapped Caper

**Sorry for the delay everyone. I just got a new job and have had some other things going on in my life that have distracted me from finishing this chapter and also continuing the story. But it will go on, no matter what! **

* * *

The youngest Riley, along with several other fourth graders, was playing tag on the playground of her public school. While most of them hid in obvious places like under the yellow slide or in the nearby tan colored crawling tube, Hailey decided to be a little less conspicuous with a hiding place and ran out the nearby gate, which was strictly against the rules, to hide behind a large bush where no one would think to or dare look.

She giggled while watching from afar as everyone else got found one by one, while a shadow loomed menacingly over her.

* * *

Meanwhile, at Fox Hollow High School, students and faculty alike continued cheering for Renomon who was still standing in the center of the football field following a quick, painless battle with multiple shadow slayers.

_This is what it feels like to be a hero._ Never before had he experienced admiration on this level. Seeing and hearing so many react that positively to his acts of heroism made him feel, for the first time, like he'd made a real difference in the world, one that very few individuals, aside from superheroes in comic books, movies or on TV, get to experience. _As much as I'm enjoying this, I'd better get out of here and turn back to normal before someone notices I'm missing. _

The crowd watched in awe as Renomon turned, leapt on top of a goal post, flipped over the fence and disappeared into a wooded area across from the school yard. And once he had gone the teachers moved all students into the gymnasium for fear of another attack where Zack looked around a seemingly endless crowd of teenagers, all talking about what they had just witnessed, for one person in particular and was relieved to see him appear, pretending as if he had run away from the danger. "Jeez, you had me worried. I thought I was going to have some explaining to do if you weren't here."

"Come on, you really think I'd leave you in the lurch like that?" Zack smirked and nodded to which Ryan rolled his eyes then glanced around to be sure nobody would hear their conversation. "Think anyone noticed I was missing when I went digital?"

"I don't think so." Although it seemed that way, neither of them could be entirely sure. Any time Ryan became Renomon carried with it the risk of compromising his digital identity and putting those closest to him in more danger than they already were. "What should I say _if_ someone does ask me where you were during the attack?"

"How should I know? You're smart. Make something up and stick with it. Like…" Racking his brain, trying to come up with a response that others would think was true. "…I was hiding in the woods across the street until it was safe."

"Aw, what's the matter? The big, bad monsters scare you?" An all too familiar voice came from behind them, re-igniting long forgotten feelings of disdain in Ryan. "Let me guess…you saw those things coming, tucked your tail between your legs and ran like a chicken." They turned to find Scott Gerardi, along with Mike Reese and Pete Grady, standing only a few feet away. "Isn't that right, Riley?"

Ryan could feel the hatred he had for their childhood nemesis surface in the form of a clenched fist but just barely managed to control the anger, taking a deep breath then smiling. "Still up to your old tricks, huh? It's been a long time. Only took you three years to grow another set after I laid the smack down on your candy ass."

Mike and Pete stifled their laughter, seeing how mad Scott was becoming. "You were lucky that day. I know it and you know it. Now that I've been hitting the gym I'd wipe the floor with you." Flexing his muscles for all to see, believing that he was the stronger individual. "Besides, you're still the same scrawny little punk I used to beat up on. Plus, you still hang out with this loser. Nothing's changed."

"Actually, a lot _has_ changed." Cleverly hinting to him the truth through an ambiguous reply that only Zack got, reveling in that knowledge. "_We've_ grown up while you're still resorting to the same childish antics that have been your M.O. since the first grade." The bully opened his mouth looking as if he was about to say something but could not. Ryan moved in closer till he was face to face with his former tormentor. "What's the matter? Cat got your tongue? Or has the fact that you're nothing but a useless waste of skin finally sunk in? See I may not have muscle and we might be a couple of losers, in the high school sense, but we'll never become what you already are and always will be…_pathetic_." Scott was dumbfounded and embarrassed. He looked at both his "friends" who said nothing but were enlightened enough by Ryan's words to turn and walk away. "Now, if you'll excuse us, like those two we've wasted enough time around you. Come on, bro."

"I'm right behind you, Ry." Zack followed, leaving the dejected teenager all alone in a world of his own inner torment with nobody to take it out on anymore. "Dude, I've never seen you act like that before. Don't get me wrong, he had it coming, but don't you think that was just a _little_ cold?"

_Zack's right. Normally I would've just walked away but instead…I just basically destroyed that guy's entire existence. What's happening to me? _

"Ryan Riley please report to the principal's office." They looked over their shoulders at the intercom on the wall. It's netting moving like a heartbeat with each spoken word. "Repeat: Ryan Riley to the principal's office. Thank you."

"What was that you were saying about no one noticing I was gone?"

* * *

After changing out of the gym uniform and back into normal attire, Ryan, all alone, walked through the halls of Fox Hollow High School towards the principal's office. Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. A side effect of how nervous he was, believing that his identity had somehow been discovered. _I'm sure no one saw my transformation. There was too much chaos going on. How then? Maybe a security camera recorded me? Man…however it happened, I guess I'll have to face the music. _

The secretary let him go in the moment that he arrived and took a seat at the principal's behest. "Mr. Riley, I'm going to get right to the point. I just received a phone call from both of your parents. There's no easy way to break this to you but…your sister is missing."

"What do you mean _missing_!? With all due respect, sir, I want to know what's going on!"

"From what I was told, shortly before the incident we had here today, Hailey was playing with her friends during recess in the schoolyard and didn't return to class afterwards. Security did a sweep of both the building and grounds but couldn't locate her. Your parents are there now with the police." Ryan knew without a shadow of a doubt that Myotismon was responsible for his little sister's disappearance but could not acknowledge that fact to anyone without outing himself as Renomon. "Now, out of safety concerns, I've decided to cancel all classes for the rest of the day. There's an officer waiting outside to escort you home. Your mother has asked me to tell you to stay there until she's able to return."

On his way "out of the building" he stopped in the stairwell to text Zack, letting him know what was going on before ducking into an empty classroom_. I know I'm going to get grounded for this but I'm the only one who can save my sister. _He calibrated the DTD to teleport him directly into DATA's control room. _Sorry you're going to freak out because of this, Mom, but you'll thank me later. _A simple push of a button and he was gone in the blink of an eye.

* * *

Hailey, caged in the main hall of Myotismon's fortress like a wild animal, tried valiantly but effortlessly to free herself from captivity. "Let me out of here! Let me out!" Devimon rolled his eyes, having to play the babysitter. "When my brother finds out where I am, you're in trouble. He's going to…"

"Listen, you little whelp!" He yelled at the top of his lungs, finally losing patience after listening to her for several hours almost non-stop. "My master has said I am forbidden to harm you, for the time being. But if you do not bite your tongue _this_ _instant_ I just might be willing to tempt his wrath and shut you up myself…_permanently_. Now, unless you want me to follow through with what I just said, sit there and do not _move_ or _speak_! Understand!?"

"Devimon…!" Myotismon appeared on the upper floors balcony, floating over the stone rail and to the bottom level. "Go on! Destroy her…if you _dare_." It was a bold challenge that Devimon would never have taken, knowing that her end would also be his. "We need her alive if we're to get Renomon to come! She is _essential _to my plan and you will not do anything to _alter_ those plans!" The fallen angel digimon was once again put in his place. "Besides…I believe what he _might_ do to you, should she be harmed by your hand, shall be far worse than anything I _would_. And, if I were you…I'd keep that in mind."

* * *

"What do you mean the D-Gate isn't functioning!?" Ryan exclaimed, arguing with Yamaki about the status of a device once used to rescue him that he needed to do the same for Hailey. "Maybe you didn't hear me before but they've got my sister! Please, I've got to get to the digital world _now_!" Almost pleading, desperate to get the help he needed. "That machine is the only thing capable of doing it! Whatever's wrong, just fix and turn it back on!"

Dolphin, also present, commented on the situation. "I'm afraid it's not that simple. The last time we used the D-Gate it proved to be very unstable. If we were to start it up now without proper testing we could potentially create a cross dimensional rip that would swallow up all life on Earth world and the universe similar to that of a black hole."

Yamaki, although having been verbally berated, was more than understanding towards Ryan's plight. "Believe me…we're going to do everything in our power to bring your sister back safe and sound. I promise."

"Sir…!" Riley's voice yelled through the desk intercom. "We have a situation up here!" The three of them, joined by Shibumi and Janyu along the way, hurried up to the control room. "We're receiving a transmission from the digital world."

The computer screen was filled with static which cleared to reveal Myotismon's scarred face staring back at everyone in the room. "Hello, Ryan Riley. Or would you prefer _Renomon _now?" Ryan stared right back with a vicious scowl. "By this point you've realized that I do indeed have your sibling here at my humble abode. I assure you that no harm has befallen her. And I would be more than willing to release the girl…_if_ you would be willing to make a little _trade_." He knew exactly where this was headed and disliked it just as much. "_You_ for _her_…it is but that simple. Devimon will be waiting in that _wretched_ park should you decide to accept…any _questions_?"

"No, but I do have something to say…" Ryan approached the screen, mid walk before coming to a stop. "…should _anything_ happen to Hailey…you won't be able to run far enough to get away from me!"

Myotismon snickered as the feed suddenly came to an end, returning static to the monitor. With a frustrated growl, Renomon turned and, without a word, proceeded towards the exit. Henry's father stepped in front of him. "You can't seriously be considering giving yourself up to that monster? It's obviously a trap. He has no intention of letting your sister go even if you do surrender to him. You'll be all on your own against them."

"I know. But what if you were in my place and it was one of your children? What would you do?" Janyu looked off to the side, having no further argument to dissuade him and moved aside though the fox digimon answered his own question anyway. "You wouldn't have any other choice…neither do I. And I guess I am on my own."

"Guess again." Takato appeared with Guilmon, Rika, Renamon, Henry and Terriermon at the top of the stairs he was about to go down. "We're a team. Team's always stick together. More importantly we're friends. And friends are always there for one another." The tamers words deeply touched the fox digimon. "You've stuck your neck out of us more times than we could ask you to. Now it's our turn to do the same. What do you say? Will you let us help?"

Renomon looked at Renamon who nodded, providing that extra assurance he needed. "What are we waiting for? Let's go and get my little sister back."


	7. The Rescue

Devimon impatiently stood in a portion of Shinjuku Park where _almost_ no one else would find him while waiting on Hailey Riley's older brother's arrival. He had waited for just about one hour then, coming to the conclusion that his prey wouldn't take the bait, was prepared to leave when a noise emanated from an area brush surrounding the clearing. Renomon appeared and the two locked eyes, exchanging their mutual hatred for one another in a single glance.

"Before you take another step, transform back to your human form and throw that digivice into the woods." Renomon tightened his eyes with anger before turning back into Ryan, unclasping the device from his wrist and tossing it away. "Very good…you know I thought for a moment that you were going to abandon your own flesh and blood. That kind of ruthlessness would have been quite impressive. But you don't have it in you to do something that…_diabolical_."

"If you or Myotismon do anything to hurt my sister, you'll find out just what I _am_ capable of."

With all the pleasantries out of the way, Devimon conjured up a dark portal and motioned with his hands towards it. "After you, _Renomon_..."

Ryan, although doubtful that things were going to go as planned, entered the portal, thinking that he would literally be stabbed in the back, and found himself instantaneously transported into the familiar macabre lair. "Ah…" Myotismon turned, acknowledging the teen's arrival and revealing his sister, still locked in an energy cage. "…how nice of you to join us."

Hailey screamed in both joy and fright at the sight of her older brother. "Ryan!"

"Hailey…!" Ryan tried to reach her but Devimon stepped in his way. "You've got me! Now let her go like you said you would!"

"And we _will_…" Myotismon's reassurance sounded hollow. "…once you've proven your worth of the power that has been given to you." It was the exact kind of catch that was expected out of an untrustworthy maniac. "Whether you realize it or not, you've been given a gift. You are no longer bound by the limitations of being human. All _we_ want to do is help you realize your full potential."

"_If _I was crazy enough to "prove" myself, how do I know you'll release my sister?" It was a valid query, considering their last agreement. "You already reneged on our deal for me to take her place. Why should I trust that you'll fulfill your end of the bargain _this_ time?"

With a snap of his fingers the cage disappeared like smoke, freeing Hailey who fled into Ryan's arms. It came as a shock to him that Myotismon would keep his word. "Does that answer your question? You're free to leave if that is what you wish. But I would caution against venturing out into the dark zone. There are _things_ out there that only nightmares are made of. _Or_...you can stay and prove once and for all that you are worthy of your new heritage…including the honorable name _Renomon_."

"Don't talk about honor when you know absolutely _nothing_ about it." He felt disgusted that Myotismon would even breathe that word in a sentence. "Now I'm only going to tell you once: open that portal back up and let her go. She's just a kid. You don't need her anymore and she's no threat to you whatsoever. Send her back and I'll cooperate. Otherwise, we'll take our chances out there."

After a few moments of contemplation, Myotismon motioned his head prompting Devimon to re-open the gateway back to Shinjuku Park. Ryan then took out his cellphone and gave it to Hailey. "Sis, listen to me, when you get to Shinjuku call the others, let them know what's going on and they'll come get you. Okay?"

"No. I'm not going to leave you here all by yourself with _them_."

"Yes…" The dark portal opened directly behind Hailey who hadn't noticed it. "…you are." With a gentle shove she fell through, landing safely before it closed. "Now that that's out of the way, who am I going to have to fight? You're a lot of things, Myotismon, including predictable. I'm sure, without a doubt, you have an opponent in mind that's a lot stronger than I am. Let me take a wild guess…Kuwagamon? How about Piedmon? Oh, I've got it…BlackWarGreymon! Who's it going to be?"

Devimon grinned and stepped forward. "_Me_."

* * *

Hailey stood in the clearing, waiting like she had been told to, when sounds of snapping twigs and rustling leaves. Her head turned in every direction with each noise that became audible in succession. She was surrounded by the unseen creatures lurking in the woods, being stalked by like prey to a wild animal. And it was undoubtedly so that Myotismon had gone back on his word as expected.

"Pyro-Sphere…!"

"Bunny Blast…!"

Through the spaces in between the foliage Hailey could just make out what looked like fireworks going off, colliding with trees and, possibly, what was after her. Then silence. A shadow slayer stumbled out of the woods, fell to the ground and dissolved into junk data which dispersed into the air. The leaves rustled once again. Only this time the tamers and their digimon, except for Renamon, appeared.

"Are you alright?" Rika hurried over to help the girl up. "What happened?"

The shock from both the kidnapping and being stalked by shadow slayers started wearing off at which point she was able to reply. "They…they've got my brother!"

"We know." Shibumi showed up holding a metallic briefcase marked with the DATA logo. After placing the case down in the spot where Hailey had appeared, he clicked both locks and opened it up. "Don't worry. Everything's going just the way we planned."

* * *

Devimon escorted Ryan outside of the castle into the courtyard which was quite large but barren and void of any life. The fortress' high stone wall surrounded them with no clear exit visible. There would be no escape. "You guys should get a gardener to come in and fix up your yard. While you're at it I'd call an interior decorator because this gothic theme you've got going on is _really_ outdated."

"I've heard enough of your jokes, human!" Devimon growled out, enraged that his opponent was taking the situation so lightly. "It's time for me to finish what I began from the moment we first met." Shadow slayers emerged from the ground, helping the virus type to outnumber Ryan ten to one. "Let's see your humor get you out of this one."

Ryan shook his head and laughed. "Do I _really_ look that stupid to you? I mean, I get you think all humans are inferior but that doesn't mean we're dumb. I told you before I didn't trust you or think you'd play fair. So, for once, I figured: why should _I_? Right…Renamon?" The vixen made her presence known by unleashing a diamond storm attack which scattered all of the slayers and, while still in the air, threw the teen his digivice which he caught then slapped on. "One last joke for you, pal. What did the human say to the evil digimon right before kicking his butt? Answer: I'm going digital!"

The transformation lasted a second or two. Devimon shielded both eyes from the light which brought forth Renomon. "Human or digimon…I _will_ destroy you!"

"Then why don't you stop talking…" He got into battle stance in mid-sentence, taunting his foe. "…and _do it_."

"Death Claw…!" Devimon extended his arms like rubber in an attempt to grab Renomon but missed when the fox digimon leapt into the air and hit a flying kick to the virus' face which sent him flying backwards several feet. Rubbing his bruised jaw he got up, more enraged than before. "You dare lay a hand on me!? Now you're going to pay!"

Renamon also had her hands full with half a dozen shadow slayers. Running across the stone wall to avoid several attacks, which sent bits of rock and dust into the air, provided the vixen with some cover to use a more stealthy approach using the phase shifting ability to disappear and then re-appear behind a pair, slamming their heads together. "Sorry boys but sometimes two heads _aren't_ better than one." It took her a split second to realize what she had said. "And now I'm picking up Ryan's habits."

"Come on, Devi-dork, you can do better than that." Renomon easily dodged the multiple Death Hand attacks Devimon was wildly and angrily firing at the moving target. "You couldn't hit the broad side of a barn. I think it's pretty safe to say you'll never have a career as a major league pitcher." Every one liner he came out with fueled the fire that was Devimon's fury. "Okay, let me help you out. I'll stand perfectly still. Now, the goal here is to hit your target. You get the concept yet?"

"Shut up. Shut up! Shut up! SHUT UP!" Devimon gathered up every bit of power he could for one powerful blast. "DEATH HAND..!"

"Move…!" Renamon, still dealing with a few more foes, yelled as a warning. But Renomon stood his ground, staring down the burning sphere as it came towards him showing no signs of fear. "Ryan!"

The blast hit the spot where Renomon stood, leaving behind nothing but scorched earth and smoke rising into the air. "That'll teach you mock me."

"Actually…" Renomon leapt through the haze left over by the smoke from the still smoldering soil, doubled kicking Devimon in the chest and again in the head before hitting a neck breaker that did not destroy the champion but almost knocked him out cold. "…that's only going to make me mock you more. Why? You took your best shot and I'm still here. And, remember, I'm only half a digimon. Not to mention a rookie level one at that, which makes you probably the poorest excuse for a digital monster this side of the dark zone being unable to defeat me."

Slow clapping echoed through the area. Myotismon was floating about twenty feet above, having been an unseen spectator. "Bravo, Renomon. Bravo. You have not only bested your opponent in battle but you've also taken from him the most important aspect to any warrior: his pride."

"He had no pride to begin with. Plus, he's not a warrior…just a brainless servant to a soulless scumbag." The ultimate's expression changed from pleased to bitter. "You speak of things like honor and pride as if they pertained to you. They don't. You're nothing but a plague to this world and mine. One that must be stopped at all costs." Renamon stood proudly by his side as he spoke with the conviction of a true warrior. "And if you had any honor, you never would have resorted to using my family as insurance to get to me. That was a mistake you'll regret. Because when this all ends, and it comes down to just you and me, I'm going to personally make you pay for _everything _you've done and avenge all those who have perished at your hand by making sure you _never_ come back again." Another portal opened much to Myotismon's surprise. "Catch you later, fang face."

They barely managed to escape just as another legion of slayers showed up. _We'll see who has the last laugh. Whether you know it or not…I've already won._

* * *

The two vulpine digimon emerged from the portal and arrived in the park, surrounded by their friends who were more than happy to see them.

"You made it." Shibumi said, breathing a sigh of relief. "Good work, you two."

"Wait!" Hailey frantically ran up to the two digimon. "Where's Ryan? Is he…? Did he…?"

Renomon knelt down. "It's alright, sis…" He pressed the button on his digivice, turning human again. "…I'm here. I'm okay."

Though bewildered beyond normal circumstances she embraced him, equally as glad as the others to see her older brother safe and unharmed. "You're a digimon? But how? And how'd you get out of there?"

"I'll explain the whole story about how I became Renomon later. As for everything else..." Proceeding to tell the story from the beginning.

_The D-Gate they used to rescue me from Myotismon not working, I initially thought there was no other way but to give myself up even though I knew the trade was bogus. But after some words of encouragement from everyone, we realized we'd need to come up with some kind of plan. And, fortunately for us, Mr. Mizuno had an idea._

_Don't ask me how but in under half an hour he managed to rig up device using two power-couplings so that they would absorb the residual energy from a dark portal being opened._

_The moment they were fully charged, he would temporarily recreate the portal. All I needed to do was get into Myotismon's fortress and free you. And when you got sent back here, Renamon came through undetected to back me up since we knew Myotismon couldn't be trusted._

"And that's all she wrote." Ryan added to sum up the days adventure. "Now I just have to figure out how I'm going to explain all this to our parents without giving up my secret."

Coming to the realization that being either found out, grounded or both would impede on his ability to stop Myotismon from destroying the world, Hailey did something very noble. "I'll take the blame. Bring me home; tell them you found me and that I left school for fun or something like that. They'll believe you."

"You'd do that for me?" She smiled and nodded. "Mom's going to ground you till you're in high school. You know that right? Are you sure that's what you want to do?"

"I'm sure. If I don't, we may not have a house for me to be grounded in much longer."

Rika came over and put a hand on the girls back. "You're a good little sister, Hailey."

"I know…but it's only because I have an awesome big brother."

* * *

**My apologies for the constant delays everyone. Work is killing me not to mention trying to get into graduate school. I'm going to try harder to update faster without compromising the story. Thank you to all who have reviewed, followed and favorite my stories. I'm not going to stop no matter what.**


	8. Things To Come

Ryan entered Fox Hollow Park around noon with Storm, secured by a black collar with matching leash, who felt very uncomfortable with it around his neck. _Do I really have to wear this thing? You know I'm not going to run away or anything, right?_

"One, there's a leash law." Pointing out the obvious rule enforced in most states. "Two, the last time we tried that you took off after that stray cat and I had to chase you halfway across this park. And although I'd have no trouble catching you now, being that I have these powers, I'd rather not tempt fate. Besides, it's not even that bad. "

_That was one time! Come on, give a dog a break. _Storm tried whining his way out of it. _Please?_

It seemed for a moment Ryan would relent. "Not a chance. I'm not falling for the old crying act. You're staying on the leash."

_Well, it was worth a shot…party pooper. _

They approached Zack who was sitting on a bench near the basketball courts which were all empty. No one else was around. "Hey. So, how'd things go with your sister and parents?"

"Surprisingly not as bad as I thought. Don't get me wrong she got yelled at and grounded but they weren't too harsh since she's never done anything wrong before. Technically she still hasn't but I definitely owe her for taking the fall." He took a seat after tying his dogs leash around one of the legs. "I'm sure that's not why you wanted to meet me here. What's up? Is something wrong?"

"You tell me. Does this qualify as _something wrong_?" Zack held up a newspaper, The Helix City Herald, and handed it to Ryan who saw himself as Renomon on the front page with a caption that read: "Digimon Invade Fox Hollow" along with a photo of Renomon following his fight with the shadow slayers on the football field. "And if that wasn't enough, you got double the coverage as yourself too." Just below it was a second article about Hailey's kidnapping and return. "Check out who wrote both pieces."

"Written by…" It was smaller print that he had to lean in closer to read, feeling uneasy as the name became clear. "…oh, man."

* * *

While isolated in the dungeon Devimon raged about with anger about his defeat a day earlier having carved Renomon's name on every surface he possibly could, obsessed more so than ever with the hybrid digital monster. _You've shamed me. In return, I will destroy everything and everyone you hold dear. You might be part digimon but you're also human. And that humanity is what will cost you in the end._

Myotismon stood unseen atop the stairwell by the dungeons entrance, listening and watching as his subordinate fumbled about in the darkness with a cocky grin before quietly exiting. "All the pieces of the puzzle are falling into place as I've planned. Devimon's failures continue to make him more vengeful towards Renomon whose own demons are slowly bubbling up to the surface. All I have to do now is watch and wait for the time when the hero of two worlds…becomes the herald for their destruction. Ha, Ha, Ha…"

* * *

It was nighttime in Helix City, a metropolis that never slept. Only one light remained on in The Helix City Herald's main offices. The same front page that Zack had shown to Ryan sat across a single cubicles desk. The writer of the two front page articles, Lucy Collins, sat at her computer conducting unseen research. She stopped for a moment to tear Renomon's picture out of the paper, place a single piece of scotch tape on and taped it to the wall. "Like I said before: there'sastory here…" Right next to the picture of Renomon was a photograph of Ryan leaving the dojo. "…all I need to do is uncover the truth."

* * *

**Will the intrepid reporter uncover Ryan's secret identity? And just what is Myotismon's master plan? Read on next time with Digimon: Digital Monsters!**


End file.
